?? German weirdness

So like, when do Germans sleep, anyway? Are they genetically engineered to need only five hours a night or something? I went to the Elternstammtisch last night (parents-sit-around-a-table-in-eating-establishment event) because they were going to talk about the third grade class field trip. It started at 7:30 and went until ten. PM. And I still had to walk home after that. And I still had to get up at 6:30 the next morning. Even if the parents assume the kids are completely self-sufficient and will get up, eat, and leave on their own, many of the parents still have to work. Really, the regular late-night events for parents of school children leave me scratching my head.

The meeting itself was okay. My son seems to be way, way, waaaaaay above his peers in reading. Some of the other mothers were saying that their kids won't read anything that doesn't have pictures on every page. It's too hard, and they get too bored. I suggested that one problem with boys and reading is that there's less out there for them to read (aren't US publishers always crying for more boy books? The German shelves are very girl-heavy, anyhow.) It was like the one topic I didn't come across as completely clueless on. It's nice when there's one, anyway.

Okay. Now I've got to bring everybody to music practice AND teach Spanish while it's going on. My house is a wreck. Much as I hate cleaning, I
 think tomorrow is Excavation Day.